Bacteriophage Ecology Group

Bacteriophage Ecology Group Bacteriophage Ecology Group

Little (2005)

Chapter authored by John W. Little published in 2005.

Little, J. W. 2005. Lysogeny, prophage induction, and lysogenic conversion. p. 37-65. In: M. K. Waldor, D. I. Friedman, and S. L. Adhya (eds.), Phages: Their Role in Bacterial Pathogenesis and Biotechnology. ASM Press, Washington DC. [Google Books]

This is the first paragraph: "Temperate phages can carry genes that affect the phenotype and behavior of their bacterial host. These genes can be considered extra genetic material in that they are not necessarily for viral lytic growth or for the lysogenic lifestyle. In this chapter, these extra genes will be termed 'foreign genes' for ease of reference. Foreign genes include genes for various toxins that have pathogenic effects. The expression of toxin genes has been documented to occur in two different phases of the viral life cycle. The primary goal of this chapter is to describe circumstances under which foreign genes can be expressed. We will first consider the life cycle of temperate phages. With this background, we will then describe how foreign genes can be expressed in the lysogenic state. We will then turn to a more detailed description of a particular temperate phage, λ, with an emphasis on the regulatory mechanisms that are best understood for this phage. This description will facilitate an understanding of how foreign genes can be expressed during the process of prophage induction, and a particular example will be described."

Loading

Contact web master.  Return to terms.